Calls for international accountability and urgent action to address the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in Gaza have reached a fever pitch in early September 2025, as new reports confirm famine conditions and growing legal and political pressure mounts across Europe. The crisis, which has deepened over the past months, now stands at a crossroads—one where the decisions of governments, financial regulators, and civil society could have lasting consequences for millions of lives and the global order.
On September 5, 2025, La Via Campesina, a global peasant movement, issued an unequivocal call for solidarity with the Palestinian people. According to their statement, the Israeli occupation regime is waging what they describe as a "genocidal war through starvation in Gaza," while simultaneously escalating its "project of ethnic cleansing in the West Bank." The group cited a recent Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report from August 22, which confirmed that famine—classified as IPC Phase 5—has struck the Gaza Governorate and is expected to spread to Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis Governorates by the end of September.
The IPC report paints a dire picture: over half a million people in Gaza are now facing catastrophic conditions marked by starvation, destitution, and death. Another 1.07 million people—more than half the population—are in Emergency (IPC Phase 4), and 396,000 are in Crisis (IPC Phase 3). The IPC has called for an "urgent and immediate ceasefire" and an end to the conflict to allow for a large-scale humanitarian response.
La Via Campesina did not mince words, asserting, "This famine is being deliberately engineered and weaponized. It is not a humanitarian failure, but a war crime carried out with the full complicity of the United States and European powers." The organization accused Western governments of using humanitarian aid as a mechanism of control and called for real solidarity, including immediate sanctions and an end to all military and trade cooperation with Israel.
The urgency of these calls has been echoed in European capitals, where the debate over how to respond to Israel's conduct in Gaza has grown increasingly heated. Over the weekend, foreign ministers from EU states met informally in Copenhagen to discuss possible sanctions against Israel. While EU foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas told DW there is a "growing majority" of countries supporting sanctions, consensus remains elusive—largely because of Germany's hesitancy. Germany, the EU's most populous member, has thus far limited itself to calls for Israel to act within international law, with Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul rejecting trade embargoes or other sweeping measures.
Yet public opinion in Germany has shifted dramatically. According to the latest Politbarometer survey commissioned by public broadcaster ZDF, 76% of Germans believe Israel's actions in Gaza are not justified, and 83% want their government to stop or limit arms exports to Israel. The German Left party and, more recently, some Social Democrats have pushed for suspending the EU-Israel association agreement and ending arms exports. Despite these pressures, Germany has opposed reviewing the EU-Israel association agreement, even as two-thirds of EU states supported such a move in May 2025.
Legal concerns have also come to the fore. As DW reports, the International Association of Genocide Scholars declared in early September that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. German courts are set to review the legality of past weapons deliveries to Israel this November, with the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) arguing that Germany could be found complicit in war crimes. "If just one of these proceedings ends, and entails specific measures that need to be taken by complicit countries like Germany, that would have an impact," said ECCHR lawyer Alexander Schwarz. He added, "A final red line would be any court, whether domestic or international, saying that Germany—by delivering arms—is violating international law or is complicit in the crime of genocide."
The sense of urgency is not limited to the political and legal arenas. On September 4, around 40 protesters gathered outside the headquarters of Luxembourg’s financial regulator, the CSSF, accusing the agency of enabling war crimes and possible complicity in genocide by approving Israel’s sovereign bond prospectus. Organized by the Comité pour une paix juste au Proche-Orient (CPJPO), the protestors delivered a letter to CSSF Director Claude Marx, arguing that Luxembourg was "helping to finance the illegal and criminal policy of the Israeli state" after Ireland stepped back from its role as European authority approving Israeli bonds amid mounting opposition.
Calling the securities "blood bonds," the CPJPO said, "The funds raised are intended to finance the genocidal war against the Palestinian people in Gaza and the policy of colonisation and apartheid in the West Bank and East Jerusalem." Luxembourg Green Party deputy Sam Tanson told the Luxembourg Times that Israel openly markets the bonds in connection with the war, making them "a tool of war financing." The CSSF, for its part, stated that its review was limited to "determining the completeness, consistency and comprehensibility of the information contained" in the prospectus, and that approval should not be seen as an endorsement of the transaction or the issuer’s creditworthiness.
Meanwhile, La Via Campesina has outlined a series of urgent actions for civil society and governments. These include joining a Global Day of Action and Strike on September 18, 2025, supporting international investigations to hold Israel and its supporters legally accountable, advocating for sanctions and the suspension of EU-Israel trade agreements, and pushing for the immediate opening of crossings and establishment of safe humanitarian corridors. The movement is also encouraging activists to participate in the next "Global Sumud Flotilla" on September 10, which aims to break the blockade on Gaza and demand unconditional access to humanitarian aid.
There is also a call for international volunteers to support the autumn 2025 olive harvest in the West Bank, an effort to help Palestinian farmers access their fields amid settler violence and threats of annexation. On the diplomatic front, La Via Campesina urges the activation of the "Uniting for Peace" mechanism at the UN General Assembly in New York this September, seeking to override the US veto in the Security Council and suspend Israel from the United Nations.
The movement’s demands extend to the inclusion of Palestinian civil society organizations in all negotiations regarding Palestine’s future, insisting that their voices must be heard in any international forum. "We urge all international institutions and governments to include Palestinian civil society organisations in processes and negotiations on Palestine," La Via Campesina stated.
As the humanitarian crisis deepens and the legal and political stakes rise, the coming weeks may prove pivotal. Whether the world’s governments and institutions will heed these calls for action—or continue to debate and delay—remains an open question, but the consequences of inaction are becoming harder to ignore with each passing day.